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| Thomas Graham |
A year ago, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) announced that Texas would be home to the ARPA-H Customer Experience Hub. The federally financed center, to be located at Dallas’ Pegasus Park, a globally recognized center for life science innovation, business and social impact, is one of only three regional hubs in a $2.5 billion health innovation network initiative that’s projected to rise in funding to over $6 billion in a few years.
The stunning victory for North Texas expands on biomed growth and contract victories in the Lone Star State that once would’ve gone to more familiar centers. Think the Boston-New York medical corridor or the San Francisco Bay Area, whose medical facilities stand out internationally. But today, the biosciences win in Texas indicates that our reputation is rising and should be considered the future.
The impact of the ARPA-H hub victory in Texas was earned through Texas-style grit, building team synergies and strategic planning. Standout institutions and community leaders from across the state came together in the healthcare consortium behind Texas’ ARPA-H bid. Crosswind’s role was to create the coalition and manage national outreach, strategic media alliances and influentials across multiple business and political spectrums as the ARPA-H bid took shape. The results of everyone’s hard work and synergy will pay dividends for decades.
We’re often asked how Crosswind was able to help Texas stand out against its East and West Coast competitors. The answer is standard block-and-tackle PR work with a strong emphasis on developing substantive, meaningful stories worthy of being told—and then placing those narratives into pitch decks, briefings, proposals and strategic media placements. We have a roadmap for successful strategic initiatives that can help organizations in their communication efforts to bring national attention and funding victories to the medical excellence in their state or region:
| This article is featured in O'Dwyer's Oct. Healthcare & Medical PR Magazine |
Teamwork makes the dream work
Our leadership knew from the beginning that we had to present a unified effort to overcome the already well-established centers of biosciences excellence. While recent analysis shows that life-sciences investment is on the rise, the top 10 cities for life-sciences activity are almost evenly filled by metros located along the East and West coasts, with Texas missing from the top 10. As it turns out, however, the state was competitive in terms of investment and real estate dedicated to life sciences. And, importantly, Texas had a much more compelling story to tell. The diverse and growing population of our state provided ample narratives for expanding clinical trial research—and our top institutions have a history of working together and collaborating for the good of the state.
Identify deeper, more powerful stories
Any PR effort is about storytelling, and we want to identify key stories and achievements that set us apart, such as highlighting groundbreaking research, showcasing innovative treatments and featuring researcher and patient success stories. However, there are more powerful stories that should be mined and told. We coach our clients to consider that all audiences listen to the same station: WII-FM (“What’s in it for me?”) radio. If you’re a decision-maker, why would you consider Texas? What could possibly be in it for them? We highlighted when a then U.S. Vice President had a family member fighting cancer, he considered Texas. Surely, we argued, that reputation extended to others.
Be strategic in media engagements
Media coverage is a critical component of any successful communications effort, and building relationships with national media is a foundational requirement. But in competitive situations, not all media coverage is good media coverage. It’s important to be relevant in the conversation but strategic in the information. Some of our work additionally included:
Identify national media and themes. Research coverage: Identify relevant journalists and outlets that cover healthcare, medicine and related topics. Pitch stories: Develop compelling pitches that align with the interests of specific journalists. Cultivate relationships: Maintain regular contact with journalists to build trust and credibility.
Leverage local media. Partner with local outlets: Collaborate with local newspapers, TV stations and radio stations to amplify regional medical achievements. Provide expert commentary: Offer local experts for interviews on national news programs.
Utilize social media. Create engaging content: Share research findings, patient stories and behind-the-scenes glimpses of medical facilities. Use relevant hashtags: Employ popular healthcare-related hashtags to increase visibility. Monitor and respond: Actively engage with followers and address questions or concerns.
Organize press events. Host press conferences: Invite national media to events where experts can discuss significant medical advancements. Conduct media tours: Offer guided tours of medical facilities to showcase cutting-edge technology and services.
Develop a strong online presence. Create a dedicated website: Develop a campaign website that provides comprehensive information about the region’s medical capabilities. Optimize for search engines: Ensure the website is easily discoverable through search engines. Use multimedia: Incorporate videos, photos and infographics to enhance the website’s appeal.
Partner with industry organizations. Collaborate with medical associations: Work with professional organizations to promote the region’s medical excellence. Participate in industry events: Attend conferences and trade shows to network with national media and industry leaders.
By implementing these basic strategies, any region can effectively communicate its medical excellence to grant makers and a national audience of influences and media. In the case of Texas, the state’s decades-long commitment to medical excellence was evident by telling a unified story of its strong research institutions, government support, collaborative partnerships, focus on education, economic incentives and emphasis on telemedicine and healthcare IT.
The pitch for Texas had to be quickly and effectively told to national media and important influentials in Washington who made the final decision in the ARPA-H competition. We succeeded by finding and telling the stories that mattered.
The victory of Texas in winning an ARPA-H innovation-network hub will pay off for the state but, more importantly, for patients and caregivers who will now have the very best at work developing game-changing breakthroughs in science and medicine that will improve health outcomes of us all.
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Thomas Graham is President, CEO and Founder of Crosswind Media & Public Relations.
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